Part 3

When they got back to the cell, the guard opened the door, let Ryan and himself in and said: "alright, let's get to work on this thing then."

Ryan sat down on the bed, tired and cold.

"Can I at least get dressed first?!" he said he said grumpily.

"Yes. But make it quick, because unlike you, I haven't got all the time in the world."

Ryan was thinking of a cocky reply, but left it this time. No sense in getting into trouble again...

The guard took the cuffs off and Ryan was allowed to put his pajamas on. The guard then cuffed him again, and added the shackles to his restraints. Ryan sighed heavily while he was doing it.

Ryan then sat down on the bed again.

"Well then," the guard issued " sign here!"

He put the paper before Ryan.

Ryan hesitated for a moment.

"You want back in the hole, that's fine by me. Leaves me with less work," the guard said.

Ryan took a deep breath (as silently as he could, so that the guard wouldn't hear it.) And signed. He suddenly felt like he had signed his own death warrant.

" Very well, I'll leave you alone for the night," the hack said, taking the document. " I'll be waking you up early tomorrow, we have a lot of work to do."

"Oh, yeah?!?" O'reily replied. "What kind of "work"!?!"

"Well, first of all getting this cell into shape, that will be your task for tomorrow. Later, I'll be back and explain a bit more detailed how the program is going to work. This program is going to be though on you, but hopefully you'll manage. Just stay out of trouble and do as I and your other superiors tell you, and you'll be fine."

Ryan could hear that the hack tried to sound encouraging, but took no notice.

I don't need his fucking encouragement, I just need to gain my parole and get out!!

"Good night then, I'll see you tomorrow at 5.30."

Ryan sighed.

" Oh, and there is no point getting all riled up over the water this time. It's fresh," The hack said, obviously talking about their little "trip" to the sink the night before Ryan got thrown in the hole.

"What day is it?" Ryan asked, suddenly remembering he had no idea.

"It's Sunday the 7th of February. And it's 12 p.m. at night, so you'll have to get ready for bed in the dark, lights are out in 2 minutes. You were in the hole for just over two weeks," the hack said and walked out closing the door behind him.

*************************************************************************** When Jones had walked out of the boy's cell, he sighed deeply. He had just realized that he was in for one HELL of a ride. He just hoped he could do it, heart a bit weak and all...

I'll have to manage though, for the boy, even though he hates my guts he does deserve this chance to show that he can get turned around...

Jones was in no way an idealist, but something in the boy's manner had stricken an interest in him, and he really believed that he could get the boy to turn at least some parts of his life around.

...Then there is always the issue of parole. It would be nice to do something for one of these men, other than contain and restrain them, but that's a later issue, first he has to prove himself capable of obeying the basic rules. Something that Jones thought that he would most definitely have a problem with, at least in the beginning.

He just hoped he had been right about the boy!

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Ryan didn't think much about anything that night.

He was too tired...

He got up off the bed, hitched his shirt, trousers and underwear as far down towards his wrists and ankles that he could and washed himself, feeling the wonderful fresh water on his skin, splashing it all over his body. He didn't care that half of it got wasted, falling on the floor or if some of it landed on his shirt or trousers.

*GOD* I didn't know water could be this fucking lovely!! He thought to himself.

He dried himself, pulled the pajama-shirt on again and buttoned it. It hadn't got all that wet, most of the water was on the floor. Although his pajamas reminded him that he was indeed in prison, and he really didn't want too wear it, just wearing it not to get sent to the hole again didn't seem like such a bad idea. In fact it was quite nice to be in some sort of "clothes" again after the cold humid air in the hole. Ryan shuttered at the thought of that place. Just when was about to pull up his pajama-pants he felt the sting in his knee. He looked down on the gaping, red, furious wound with its yellow pus.

Fuck! Maybe I should ask someone to have a look at this...he thought.

He didn't like the idea of having to expose any weaknesses to any of the fucking people in this fucking place! Let alone having to beg to be allowed to do it! Which he was fairly certain he would have to do...

He tried to clean it out by himself using the towel that hung by the basin. It was *far* too painful though. He could barely touch the wound or the skin around it with the towel without screaming...

He knew he would have to protect it though, and finding nothing else to wrap around it, he tore a bit of the towel, wrapped around his knee and tied it there. He pulled his pajama-pants up and got to bed, too tired to brush his teeth.

Lying in the lumpy bed with the smelly quilt over his head, he remembered that from now on it was probably going to be a rough ride, corporal punishment and all. But he was too tired to think about that now, and so he fell asleep, and for the first time in this new place, slept like a baby...

He woke up hearing the door buzz. His head was in a complete daze.

*Fuck*! Must have slept hard! He thought to himself as he yawned and stretched out like a cat, lying on his side. "Oh dear!" he heard the voice of Officer Jones. " I never seize to be amazed at you O'reily! You got back from the hole less than 24 hours ago, your cell is yet again a complete mess and you yourself is not much better! This is getting to be tiring! " So is your nagging! Ryan thought, but he was too tired to shoot back at the officer.

The hack then walked over to the table with the basin, where he spotted the torn, soaked towel that O'reily had disregarded, throwing it on the dirty, wet floor.

" Now I don't know why it is you do these things! You know better than this!!" he said in a hurt disappointed voice. Ryan wasn't bothered though, tired of the nagging. He sat up on the bed, yawned again, seemingly careless and, stretched, eyes still closed.

The hack went over to the bed and after giving him a look wild with anger, he got hold of Ryan's ear again and twisted it, forcing him to stand up.

Ryan whose eyes had still been closed was too surprised to have the chance to yell anything, and so he twisted his face in order not to scream in pain, and breathing in a panting manner, was forced to walk with the hack over to the sink.

"*This*" The hack said, "is the kind of thing that makes you land in the hole!"

He was still holding Ryan by the ear, twisting it, while he held up the towel in front of Ryan's eyes to show him what he meant.

"And considering that I'm sure you don't want to go back there right now, I'm *very* interested in how you will want to explain this to me, Mc Manus and the warden!"

Ryan was quite interested in that himself! He hadn't really thought about it last night, he had just ripped the towel, tied the missing piece to his knee and gone to sleep, not thinking about it. And he was forced to agree that it would be tricky getting out of this one without getting punished! Still he was sure he could do it, thinking how mad can the fucking warden get, it's a fucking towel! Besides, I needed it for my knee!

"Hold out you arms!" the hack ordered, voice still filled with anger. Ryan did so, and as the hack removed his cuffs and shackles, Ryan could see into his eyes. It was clear that Ryan was indeed in deep shit this time!!

"Now get dressed!!!" The hack continued and harshly pushed Ryan towards the closet.

"Hurry up!" He continued when Ryan didn't react fast enough.

Ryan hurriedly opened the closet and got some clothes out. He was going to whisper some cusses under his breath, but decided that this, was *not* a time to protest, or curse at the hack, or indeed do anything that wasn't ordered of him.

He placed the clothes on the table where the basin stood, not near any of the water that had splashed over it. He then removed his pajama-shirt and then *carefully* his pajama-pants.

"What is this?!" The hack said, touching the "Band-Aid" on Ryan's knee in an unkind way.

"AOU, FUCK!!" Ryan yelled when he felt the pain.

The guard looked ready to hit him, unless he explained what this was all about!

"I cut my knee falling when they pushed me in the hole, alright!" Ryan said with bite.

"SO!? Why didn't you tell any of us then?!" the hack shot back at him.

Ryan didn't answer, but started pulling on his jeans instead, it was *really* painful.

"Hey, let me have a look at that." the hack said sternly.

"No."

"I wasn't asking. That's an order, inmate!" The hack said, poison in his voice and eyes.

Ryan had never, NEVER, been called "inmate" to his face! It hurt him *a lot* to realize that that was because people had been nice to him so far. He was in fact an inmate, and would probably remain so for the rest of his life.

That didn't stop him from being very hurt and insulted by what the hack had called him!

When Ryan didn't comply fast enough, Jones pushed him towards the bed, making him fall over it.

"Now take of your trousers and SIT DOWN!" he ordered.

Ryan painstakingly pulled down his trousers and sat down on the bed.

The hack went over by the bed and knelt by it saying: "Don't you try anything," in a warning tone of voice.

He then undid the knot that Ryan had tied in order for the piece of cloth to stay on his wound, and removed the cloth. Ryan grimaced and hissed as he did so. The wound had already bled through the cloth, making it stick.

The hack proceeded to look at the wound, mumbling to himself, when all of a sudden he decided to press on it, seeing that it was quite obviously filled with pus.

"AOU, YOU FUCKING CUNT!!!" Ryan yelled, hurt. At the same time he pulled his knee up against his body in such a way that he managed to kick the hack on the chin and make him fall backwards...

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